Author: Jennifer Bohmueller
You’ve got this announcement you need to get out, but which is the best platform to use—your intranet/portal or your internal social channels? The choice of which one to use can depend on the news you plan on sharing and your organizational communication goals. During communication planning, you’ll want to consider the following guidelines for when to use each platform:
- Urgency and Importance: If the news is urgent or critically important, such as a major organizational change, like a new leader, a new business model or strategy, or updates on company policies, it’s best to use the intranet/portal. This ensures employees can access the information easily in one location and can return to it for additional resources.
- Formality vs. Informality: Formal announcements (think messages from senior leadership) are typically shared on the intranet/portal to maintain a professional tone. Conversely, you’ll want to use internal social channels
- Audience Reach: If the news needs to reach all your employees across different departments or locations, the intranet/portal is more effective because it’s usually more broadly accessible. However, internal social channels might be more appropriate for tailored communication targeted to specific teams or groups.
- Interactivity and Engagement: If the news involves seeking feedback and/or generating discussion, then internal social channels can be the best choice for two-way communication and promoting employee engagement.
- Content Format: Longer-form content, official documents, or multimedia files are better communicated via the intranet/portal where they can be organized and accessed easily. Short updates, quick announcements, or visual content may be better for social channels to capture attention quickly.
Ultimately, the key is to choose the internal communication channel that best aligns with the type of news you want to share, the needs of your audience, and your communication objectives.